John kbttttschnitt



March 11:, 1924. 1,486,252'

. J. KRUTTSCHNITT LOCOMOTIVE WHI STLE Filed- Oct. 8, 1923 Patented Mar. 11, 1924.

UNITED STATES' APATENT OFFICE.

, JOHN KRUTTSCHNITT, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

LocoMoTivE WHISTLE.

Application led October 8, 1923. Serial No. 667,224.

I of California, have .invented certain new and useful Improvements in Locomotivey Whistles, of which the following isa speciication.

My invention relates to locomotive Vandterminating in a cordi hanging within reach of the engineer in the cab. This cord must be pulled a considerable distance to openV the valve, and when running onlines where the whistle must be blown at .frequent intervals, the physical effort of pulling .the cordV is tiring and distracting to the engineer.-

Moreover, when the engine is swaying, as when runningoveruneven track, the whistle cord sometimes swings to such anY extent that the engineer must diverthis attention from the track ahead to reach and grasp the cord. The system oflevers and connections commonly used is subject to wear in all its joints, necessitating frequent repairs. Moreover, such a system requires that the whistle be placed to one side of the steam dome, in order that the connections may be as direct as possible, with the result that rthe kfull sound of the Whistle is blown back into the cab, causing serious annoyance to the engine men. i

By the use of the device embodying my present invention, the whistle may be -placed centrally in front of the steam dome, which shields the cab from the noise, and'inay be controlled by a small and rigidly supported lever or only a knob to be pushedwith the palm of the hand, within easy'reach ofthe engineer. Moreover,very little physical ef-A fort is necessary to operate the valve, since it is designed so that only a small part of the boiler pressure keeps it shut, a slightV vof the usual construction.

movement of the lever or knob being suficient. This not only relieves the engineer of considerable labor and distraction, but also'enables him to give short blasts of the whistle With greater accuracy than is the case at present.

vMy invention is applicable to whistles employed for a great' variety of uses, but

on account of its peculiar adaptability to locomotive whistles, it is so illustrated and described. It is to be understood, however, that the construction may be varied from that shown and described, within the limits of the claims hereto appended, without departing from the essential principles of the invention.

My invention will now be fully described Withreference toY the accompanying drawings, 'wherein- Fig. l is a part sectional side elevation ofmy improved whistle with the controlling valve therefor.

F ig. v2 is a sectional plan taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is alongitudinal section. of the a;

valve operating member.

Fig. 4.- is a diagrammatic plan view of the rear portion of a locomotive boiler, show- .ing the positions of the whistle and its controlling means. y

In the drawings, and referring for the moment to Fig. l thereof, the reference numeral 1 designates the whistle bell, which is 2 is the steam pipe leading from the boiler. 3 is a valve chamber member connected with the steam pipe 2 at t, and communicating with the usual outlet at 5 to the bell 1. 6, Fig. 2, is a linearly movable valve, adapted to coact with a seat ''v formed in the member 3. Said valve 6 is fixed upon, or more preferable formed integrally with a stein 8, which carries a piston 9- operable within a cylinder 10. The valve 6 and the piston 9 are acted upon, in opposite directions, by the full boiler pressure which enters the chamber 2 of the member 3 from the steam pipe 2, so that, by properly proportioning the areas of said valve and piston, as itt-le effective pressure as may be desired may be iinposed upon said valve to keep it closed. 't vis preferable to make the valve 6 of slightly Vgreater area than the piston 9, so that the valve is normally held closed by the steam pressure, but can be easily ,opened by a comfront of the steam dome 28, on top of theY paratively slight pressure exerted upon its stem. They outer end of the cylinder k10 is closed by a cap 11, and is connected by an exterior by-pass 12 with the s team passage 12 leading from the valve to the Whistle aperture 5, so that, When the valve V6 is open, the pressure is equalized on both sides of the piston 9, as Well as on both sides of the valve 6.

The valve chamber member 3 carries a bracket 13, Fig. 1, having a connection at 14 for the end of a tube 15. The valve stem 8 extends through the Wall of the chamber, and has a separable joint at 16, and is connected With a Wire or cable 17, Which is longitudinally movable Within the tube 15. The diameter of the Wire 17 is such that it.' fits freely, but Without appreciable side play, Within the tube 15. In practise, I prefer to make the tube 15 of copper or brass and to use a stranded steel Wire therein, but other materials may be used if desired.

The fixed tube 1.5 with its movable Wire 17 is carried into the cab of the locomotive, to a point Within easy reach of the engineer, as indicated in Fig. 4. The end of said tube is secured by a connection 18, to a fixed barrel or guide 19 supported in any convenient manner not shown. The end of the Wire 17 is fastened to a slidable plunger 20, Fig. 3, mounted Within said barrel 19 and having a head or knob 21 upon its projecting end. A spring 22, positioned Within the barrel 19 and acting against a collar 23 formed upon the plunger 20, keeps the valve closed when there is no steam pressure in the boiler.

The Whistle may be controlled by merely pressing upon the knob 21,. a movement of three-eighths of an inch being sufficient to fuuly open the valve, but for greater convenience I prefer to employ a short hand lever 24, Fig. 4, fulcrumed at 25 in an armY 26 extending from the barrel 19, and bearing against the knob 21. A stop lug 27 is provided to prevent the hand lever 24 from swinging out away from the knob 21.

It Will be seen that, on account of the direct connection, by means of the Wire 17, between the operating lever 24 and the valve 6, said valve may be very accurately and quickly controlled, to give either short or long blasts of the Whistle, Without any play or back-lash in the operating connections.- Moreover, on account of the balanced valve construction described above, the valve is easy to open, and requires but very little effort on the part of the engineer.

The Whistle 1 may be placed directly in boiler 29, as shown in Fig. 4, said dome shielding the cab 30 from the sound and steam of the Whistle. The tube 15, inclosing the movable valve operating Wire, may be run in any convenient location into the cab 30, to a position within easy reach of the engineer, without any additional moving parts and Without appreciably increasing the friction of said Wire. The operating handle 24, or the knob 2l if no handle be employed, is

carried by the rigidly supported barrel 19,

With both the bell member and the steamV connection; a valve Within said chamber controlling said communication; a piston Within said chamber connected with and spaced from said valve and exposed at all times to the fluid pressure of the steam con- Y f nection oppositely to said pressure on the valve; a by-passconnection of the valve chamber member around said valve and piston; and means for opening said valve.

2. A locomotive Whistle comprising a bell member; a steam connection; avalve-chamber member intervening and'communicating with both the bell member and the steam connection; a valve Within said chamber controlling said communication; a piston Within said chamber connected with and spaced from said valve and exposed at all times to the fluid pressure of the steam connection oppositely to the pressure on the valve; a by-pass connection of the valve chamber member around said valve and piston; a stem carrying said valve and piston and projecting Vfrom the valve chamber member aV spring-controlled, linearly-movable valve-'operating Wire connected With said stem; and a housing member for guiding said Wire.

3. A locomotive whistle comprising a bell member; a steam connection; a valve-chamber member intervening and communicating with boththe bell member and the steam connection; a valve Within said chamber controlling said communication; a piston Within said chamber connectedV with and spaced from said valve and exposed at all times to the fiuid pressure of the steam connection oppositely to the pressure on the valve; a by-pass connection of the valve chamber member around said valve and piston; a stem carrying said valve and piston and projecting from the valve chamber member; a linearly movable valve-operating Wire connected at one end with said stem; a housing member `for guiding said Wire; and a spring controlled plunger connected with the other end of saidWire.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specilication.

JOHN KRUTTSCHNITT;

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